SAVE THEM
by A1t0Aria
Summary: "It's all the New Kid's fault!" "Damn it! He screwed us!" Insecurity had made the Time Fart fail, and the Freedom Pals are sent to a world unknown, where they find out about the New Kid's feelings and have to find a way to save them before their mental state suffers from the consequences. (Spoilers for TFBW) (Rated T, but oh well, you know it's South Park.) (One-shot)


_Disclaimer: I do not own South Park!_

 _(Truth be told, this was written at least 9 months ago, but I couldn't stand seeing the chapter left untouched in my documents for such a long time, so here!)_

 _Every time I watch a game-play footage of South Park: The Fractured But Whole, I've always noticed that every single time something bad happens, the team seems to always put the blame on the New Kid. However, suddenly, the kids start to cheer the New Kid on after they send the group further into the future. While it's safe to say that maybe the Freedom Pals found out how the New Kid's insecurities may have been their fault, I wanted to do something a little more interesting and depressing. Plus, I know for a fact that if I were in the New Kid's shoes, I probably would have broke down and cried if everyone kept putting the blame on me. Hence, this fan fiction came into play._

 _This may end up being a two-shot, if you guys want me to write a second part to this._

 ** _Note:_**  
 ** _\- The Freedom Pals consider the New Kid as a guy, but I consider them as gender neutral, so I use 'they' to address the New Kid._**  
 ** _\- Eric Cartman isn't here due to story reasons. Those who know the entire story for TFBW will understand why._**  
 ** _\- A lot of swearing is involved. It's South Park, after all. (But I'm not the type who swears a lot... so it's probably quite forced.)_**  
 ** _\- The characters may be highly OOC since I don't really know South Park that well. Seriously, I've only watched YouTubers play the game, and haven't watched the TV series._**  
 ** _\- This story was written on a whim, so it may be pretty bad._**  
 ** _\- This story may end up a lot more serious, darker and sadder than the original South Park: TFBW, so there wouldn't be as much humour as in the game._**

 _With that, enjoy the story! Sorry if it ends up pretty darn lame..._

* * *

Dovahkiin stared at the plate of taco wrapped in aluminium foil which was sitting on the counter of Freeman's Tacos. Morgan Freeman had named it the 'Seven Layer Quesarrito Chipotle Beefy Nacho Supreme'. They couldn't imagine how bad their fart was going to be with this taco, but if it were true that the last person who ate this created a wormhole, then it was probably going to help the Freedom Pals stop Mitch Conner before anything happened.

"So you're ready to eat the Seven Layer Quesarrito Chipotle Beefy Nacho Supreme?" Freeman asked Dovahkiin as they reached out their small hands and grabbed the taco.

They nodded. The taco was still warm. Gingerly, Dovahkiin unwrapped the food before wolfing the entire taco down.

Morgan Freeman wasn't kidding when he claimed someone farted so bad, they created a wormhole which made time travel possible. They could already feel something churn in their stomach which made them sick, and they couldn't help but clutch their stomach. The taste of the seven-layer taco was so weird and unique, it made them feel ill and queasy.

Did the taco create a wormhole in their stomach or something? Dovahkiin didn't want to know as they felt the gas beginning to build up inside their rectum.

"Now, you must fart back in time, to before Mitch Conner was sworn into office," Freeman instructed, "You can do it. You just have to believe in yourself."

Turning around, Dovahkiin took a deep breath before they readied themself, squatting into position for a Time Fart. Beads of perspiration dripped from their forehead as the rest of the Freedom Pals watched them with anticipating eyes. As they slowly began to gas up, they noticed the group lean back a little, probably due to the incredible smell that their fart was going to give out later on.

They had to do it; they had to succeed! If they failed, this would have all been for naught! How much have they screwed up till this point? If they wanted to change back everything to normal, they had to do it! As they felt their muscles beginning to contract to force the gas out, Dovahkiin got ready to send them back in time as—

 _ **"It's the New Kid's fault!"**_

Their eyes snapped wide open.

 _ **"Damn it! He screwed us!"**_

Dovahkiin felt their lips tremble.

 ** _"Thanks to the New Kid, Cartman is Mayor, and there's no one left to help us!"_**

Their body began to quake madly. No… No… How much had they screwed the entire team over already? The reason why Mitch Conner was Mayor in the first place was because Dovahkiin farted them too forward in time! Who's able to say that they wouldn't screw this up again? They couldn't do it… They couldn't do it…

 _"It's all my fault… It's all my fault… What made me think that I could even do this in the first place? What if I screw up just like back then? Everything… It really is my fault…!"_

As the giant gas cloud from their digestive system was blown out of their butt and a huge beam of light erupted from them, Dovahkiin could barely hear Kyle Broflovski scream out, "OH SHIT!"

As the Freedom Pals were engulfed with the reddish light, Dovahkiin heard Freeman yell out, "New Kid, I don't think it's working! Are you sure you're believing in yourself?!"

 _"I've failed already, haven't I…?"_

"…! Oh no, you didn't believe in yourself! YOU DIDN'T BELIEVE IN YOURSELF…!"

* * *

Kenny McCormick woke up with a start, his eyes flying wide open… wait, were his eyes really open? Why was it still so dark?

Kenny, also known as Mysterion, squeezed his eyes shut before opening them again. There was no doubt — his eyes were wide open. But if that was the case, then why was it pitch-black darkness around him? He looked around, only to realise that the rest of the Freedom Pals were surrounding him and were also beginning to wake up.

The first person to speak up was Kyle, who was also known as Human Kite. "Wh… Where the fuck are we?!"

Clyde Donovan, who went by the alias Mosquito, muttered in a frightened tone, "Wh-wh-what the hell is this place?!"

Kenny could only feel a sinking feeling fill his heart as he groaned in dismay, "Oh, this is so damn great. Where the fuck did you take us to this time, Butthole?!"

There was no answer. Of course there wouldn't be a response. The New Kid didn't speak, after all. But this time, it felt strange and a little frightening, even for him. It was as if something had gone absolutely wrong.

And he didn't like it.

"Hang on! Where is the New Kid?"

Wendy Testaburger, known to them as Call Girl, was looking around frantically before she yelled again in obvious concern, "Where is he? He's disappeared!"

As response, Stanley 'Stan' Marsh, who called himself Toolshed, gawked in horror, "Wh-What in the… he's gone! It's just like Wendy-I mean, Call Girl said!"

Craig Tucker, known as Super Craig, groaned. "So now Butthole's fucking missing? Ugh, great. Somehow, I'm always the one who has to save your butt."

Tweek Tweak, also known as Wonder Tweek, smacked his boyfriend's arm as he hissed loudly, "Super Craig! This is serious, you idiot!"

"I know, I know." Kenny could feel a strange feeling rise up his stomach, and he didn't like it. This strange world that the New Kid had somehow brought them into seemed so sinister, as if something was going to just attack them from behind. He detested this gut feeling. It made him want to just run away as fast as his legs could take him.

But Kenny McCormick ain't a pussy - he wasn't going to let the mysterious aura of this place faze him. He was a hero, and a mysterious hero at that! There was no way he was going to let this place beat his level of mysteriousness!

"C-Come on, guys!" Suddenly, Jimmy Valmer, known as Fastpass, stood up on his crutches and started to walk forward. "We need to f-f-find the New Kid!"

Timmy Burch, whom Kenny addressed as Doctor Timothy, nodded as he placed a finger on his temple. "Yes, I agree. We need to find the New Kid and get some answers as to what is going on here. Even my mind can't discern what this place is."

Slowly, the rest of the heroes began to pick themselves up as the travelled further into the darkness, where eerily, the place seemed to become creepier, colder and surprisingly, sadder. As they continued to walk, Kenny couldn't help but shudder at the feeling of the strange cloud of gloom above everyone's heads.

* * *

The pitch-black room was eerily silent... or was it even a room? Kenny couldn't even tell how long they had been walking for. A few minutes? An hour? It was as if a concept like time didn't even exist within these walls.

"God fucking damn it, how long have we walked for already?! My legs feel like shit!"

"Jesus, be patient, Toolshed! Maybe we'll be able to find something new soon! Stop being such a dick!"

Kenny sighed as the ex-couple continued to bicker with each other. Just the perfect thing to ruin the horrible mood even further. Meanwhile, Scott Malkinson, who called himself Captain Diabetes, glanced around with a highly concerned look on his freckled face. "S-Say, is it just me, or is this place getting creepier and creepier?"

No one answered him, though everyone already knew the answer. The entire place felt like a prison, as if they were walking through someone's darkness and pain. It felt like a dark, never-ending abyss that the owner had trapped themself within. It seemed so… sorrowful.

That's right, sorrowful. Just like how he felt everytime no one remembered about his death. Kenny always wondered if the fact that he can be revived is a gift or a curse, because no one ever realises the pain that he had to go through death after death. He could say that it was like a never-ending cycle where he was doomed to suffer immense amounts of pain... kind of like this prison, actually.

It was only after a moment when Token Black, who was called Tupperware, paused and looked up. "What the hell…? Guys, I'm picking up something! Do you hear that?!"

Everyone stopped and listened attentively. It was then when they began to hear voices: the voices of what sounded like a pair of parents arguing with each other.

 _ **"We should be happy that he's made friends in this town so quickly!"**_

 _ **"We came here to hide. More friends just mean more trouble!"**_

It took a moment for Kyle to realise who it was before he yelled in shock and stepped back. "W-What?! Hang on! Hold the phone! Aren't those Butthole's parents?!"

 _ **"You're being paranoid! You need to lay off that stuff! It's changing you!"**_

 _ **"Oh, LAY OFF! It's the one thing that helps me relax from your stupid shit!"**_

Tweek winced. "Jesus Christ! Is this what he's dealing with every day?!"

Kenny could only bite his bottom lip in response. He knew how it was like to always hear parents arguing with each other. His parents weren't any better — always screaming and beating each other up whenever they were drunk or high on drugs. The only bright side of the situation is that they really loved each other, but it was only shown when they were sober. He couldn't imagine how it would have been like if his parents were to scream and yell at each other all day, all night long. How annoying would it get? It would be even worse if they were arguing because of him or his siblings... wait.

Butters, known to them as Professor Chaos, immediately spoke what Kenny had on his mind. "Is it just me, or is the New Kid's dad unhappy that he's hanging out with us...? This is a memory of the New Kid, isn't it?"

Stan looked at the 'super-villain' in confusion. "But why the hell are we able to look into his memories in the first place? Just... what is going on here?! Are we in his freaking head or something?!"

"... I think I kind of get what's going on, but it's going to be a little confusing to explain."

All eyes turned to Wendy, who had a hand under her chin in a pondering pose. Taking a deep breath, she spoke up. "There's a game that has been pretty popular for quite a while now, and it's one in which the Protagonist goes into people's inner worlds to change them. If anything, we're probably in the New Kid's heart, because we're able to see his memories. But if this place is really his heart, then that means..."

"... You got to be shitting me."

Clyde turned to Kyle in confusion. "What is it, Human Kite? What's going on?!"

Kyle immediately swerved towards Wendy with a frustrated look in his eyes. "This is fucking ridiculous! If this pitch-black world is really his heart, are you trying to imply that this weird creepy darkness is what he's been feeing all this entire damn time?!"

Wendy looked down with a slightly sad gaze before she nodded. "It's entirely possible."

Butters quickly pipped in. "D-does this mean we have to get the New Kid to change, if what you said is true...?"

"We can only figure out if we go down further," the only girl in the group replied as she continued walking. "Come on, let's go!"

This place was a world of the New Kid's? Interesting concept, Kenny had to admit. But as much as it fascinated him, he gulped in concern as he wondered what could have caused their spirituality to become so dark. And he had the gut feeling that whatever it was, he wouldn't like it at all.

* * *

There was no doubt that this place was a world related to the New Kid. As the Freedom Pals continued to walk down the dark path, they saw memories that the New Kid had with them, including the Stick of Truth times. Kenny instantly felt bad about what he did back then as the Princess, but then immediately wondered about how Clyde had felt upon seeing those memories.

But now that he thought about it, how were they going to go back once they find the ButtLord? Was he going to bring them back with a huge fart all over again?

It was then when Stan suddenly yelled out in surprise, "Hey, look! Everything's bright!"

Looking around, the entire world had suddenly brightened up like a lightbulb as the scenes from when they were still Fighters of Zaron began appearing and playing around them like a tape recorder. There were bubbles of chatter everywhere as each of the Freedom Pals excitedly pointed to the memories in which they were present.

"Oh, yeah! I remembered how the New Kid always wanted to message me in order to communicate with me!" Butters yelled in elation before he started chuckling. "It was really funny when he messaged me only to ask for my phone number... Hehehe."

"Hey, look! Princess Kenny and her Double D's!" Kyle suddenly pointed out before he started snickering, "Seems like the New Kid finds it pretty hilarious and memorable too, huh..."

Everyone burst out laughing. Though he was now the mysterious Mysterion, Kenny couldn't help but break out of his character and smile at that memory. He actually really liked acting as a Princess back then - it was really fun to have such power!

Surprisingly, even Craig looked as if he was enjoying himself. "Huh, never knew the New Kid treasured such memories with us."

"He did move into a new town, after all..."

"Oh! Aren't those memories of when we switched back to our Superhero game?"

Numerous chatter started pouring in as they continued to walk down what they could call the New Kid's Memory Lane. Such nostalgia and happiness back then! Whatever had happened to them now?

But in came a rude shock when everything suddenly went completely dark, startling all of the ten-year-olds. A strange silence filled the atmosphere, and the world around them turned creepy once more. Kenny frowned. Did something happen?

 _ **"... YOU FUCKING ANIMAL!"**_

Kenny felt his body jolt up in shock. Was that... his voice?

Instantly, the rest of the team turned towards him in puzzlement. Token was the first to respond. "Who are you speaking to, Mysterion?"

"I didn't say anything. I heard that too! What the fuck was that?!"

 _ **"If you think about it, this all kind of your fault."**_

Stan looked up in horror and confusion. "What the-That's my voice too!"

 _ **"Stop wasting time!"**_

 _ **"Damn it! He screwed us!"**_

 _ **"Cartman's being sworn as Mayor today, and it's all the New Kid's fault!"**_

 _ **"It's over. We've lost."**_

 _ **"Thanks to the New Kid, Cartman is Mayor, and there's no one left to help us!"**_

 _ **"It's the New Kid's fault!"**_

Eyebrows crushed down, Kyle blew up in anger. "Is this what that asshole actually remembers us by?! ... Wait, but if that's the case, then..." Suddenly, he stepped back in horror as the realisation him him. "No way... It can't be...?!"

Clyde looked on in confusion. "No way what?! I don't understand what the hell's going on here!"

Stan glanced at Kyle before he gasped as well. "... It was our fault this entire time...?"

Craig stared at them with a deadpan expression. "Ya think?"

Timmy pondered for a while before he looked back up at them and pressed a finger on his temple again. "I get it now. It seems that all of the things we've said to the New Kid has caused him to lose his self-esteem. He couldn't believe in himself because of what we said, that's why he failed to bring us back in time and we ended up in here instead. Hence, technically speaking, we were the ones who caused it all to happen."

Wendy's gaze softened. "So... it was our fault the entire time...?"

A hush fell upon the group as the realisation sunk in. Suddenly, Kyle quickly turned around such that his back was facing them. "C-Come on, guys. We may not like what crazy shit there is waiting for us out there, but we need to move on if we want to find him."

* * *

"Wh... What the fuck?!" It was the only thing that escaped from Stan's mouth when they stepped into another part of the New Kid's heart. The entire place had changed, now looking like a strange lab.

Jimmy quickly looked around, only to shout out upon seeing a familiar logo on the wall. "B-But this is Dr Meph... Meph... Mephe... Mephesto's lab!"

"Did something happen to him here?"

Kenny responded to Kyle. "Not surprising. This is one fucked up shithole, after all. If something raped the New Kid's mind here or something, at least he survived that ordeal."

Suddenly, there was a loud shriek as Scott pointed to what seemed like an operation table. "Hey! That's Butthole's dad!"

Stan shook his head as he pointed in another direction. "It's not just his father — look, there's his mom! What the hell happened to her?! She looks so fucked up!"

Kenny had to deadpan. "... Fucked up is an understatement in this case, Toolshed."

"Well, she's bleedin' all over the damn place! What the hell, man?!"

However, Wendy noticed something else. "Hang on, there's the New Kid, standing beside the operation table! What's he doing?!"

There stood the New Kid, who eyes were shadowed by their bangs. The Freedom Pals could only watch in astonishment and anticipation as the New Kid gritted their teeth together and struggled to reach for a button underneath the table.

"What does that button do?! Why is this in the New Kid's memory?!"

Butters didn't have to wait for long to get his answer when the New Kid looked down even further, and punched the button, causing their father to scream and panic.

 _ **"AHGHGH! I'm so scared! I'm so scared...!"**_ Suddenly, he turned to his child and forced a smile. _**"G-Goodbye, Daddy loves you so much...!"**_

ZAP!

Clyde screamed and burst into tears when a lazer beam shot out of one of the apparatus of the operation table, cleanly slicing the New Kid's father head off. Everyone else stared in absolute confusion and horror. Kenny himself felt as if he was about to throw up, but then suppressed the urge to vomit.

Kyle was the first to speak up after regaining composure. "B-But this...!"

"He... killed his dad..."

Another soft voice was heard. The group quickly focused their attention on the New Kid's mother, who was bleeding in her limbs. "You did the right thing, sweetie. Now put your father's head in there, and go and get help!"

Craig stood up straight as he placed an arm around the shoulders of a trembling Tweek, a highly concerned look on his face. "Whoa, whoa. Did she really just say that? That's fucked up."

They slowly turned to look at the New Kid again, who stood there in silence before slowly shuffling over and lifting up their father's head. Turning around, they moved to place it into the DNA slot and shut it. A loud grinding was heard from inside, causing some of the members to wince.

 _ **"DNA Sample successfully obtained."**_

As the robotic voice sounded, the New Kid slowly inched their way towards the lift which began to power up. The Freedom Pals could only watch solemnly as they pressed the button of the lift which whisked them towards the ground floor. The image soon transited to the New Kid standing in the lift. No one said a word as the New Kid placed their elbows on the railings and covered their eyes with their hands.

Kyle spoke up after a while. "So the reason why he took such a long time to get the tram down is because of this...?"

Butters looked as if he were about to cry too. "And... and I blamed him for wasting our time too..."

At that moment, a loud, painful scream erupted from the New Kid as the visions around them began to vanish. Kenny couldn't tell what this feeling was, but it was one that (he never expected himself to say this in his life) made his heart shatter and want to cry out.

There was a long moment of silence before Stan muttered shakily, "This is really our fault... we never realised what Butthole had gone through and we just berated him for everything that happened."

Kyle shook his head. "It's not just that! He probably didn't even have any god damn control over those incidents! We... we..."

He had never expected himself to ever feel that way for someone, but Kenny could feel tears threatening to spill from his eyes as he growled, "We fucked up real bad!"

"... *Hic!* *Hic!* BWAAAA!"

Poor Butters immediately burst into tears as he fell to the ground, unable to take it any further. There was full silence, except for the crying and sobbing of some of the children who could not take walking down the place anymore.

Kenny couldn't explain the feeling as he felt hot tears roll down his face, which were hidden by the mask he was wearing. He never expected that there will be one point of time in which he would actually feel bad for someone. The New Kid didn't deserve to go through what they did, yet their entire group still yelled at them after what they had gone through...

If only the New Kid actually spoke up and told them everything… but they couldn't, and Kenny knew the reason why. Ever since Stick of Truth, the poor kid had been targeted by the government due to their abilities to gain followers so quickly. Hence, they couldn't speak and had to keep their identity a big secret. Even up to this day, no one actually knew the New Kid's name, but Kenny could have sworn that the nutty old man who started streaking down the place that day had revealed the name… except none of them actually remembered because they were so focused on fighting each other.

Way to go with their idiocy.

Suddenly, Jimmy stood up and wiped the tears out of his eyes, staring at something in the distance. "Hey, i-is that…?"

Scott quickly followed soon and squinted forward. "That's him, right?!"

Everyone quickly looked up. Scott was right — there was a small figure wearing a long-sleeved shirt and long pants standing in the distance with their back facing them. Despite Kenny wanting to quickly run over and see if the kid's alright, something seemed very… off about them. His gut feeling told him that he shouldn't approach the New Kid even though he knew he had to do so in order for them to be saved.

"Dovahkiin, I'm sorry...!"

Something struck Kenny. That's right, wasn't the New Kid's name Dovahkiin? But... who was the one who called the New Kid out?

Stan immediately whirled around in shock and screamed loudly, "Oh my god-BUTTERS, YOU FUCKING IDIOT! WAIT UP!"

Much to everyone's horror, the boy in the tinfoil helmet had already ran over towards the small figure standing in the distance. However, Butters himself also stopped once the New Kid began to turn towards him.

"Dovahkiin...? Is that... a bomb...?"

Standing in front of Butters, with eyes shadowed by bangs, was indeed the New Kid, but strapped to them was a bomb with wires all over. The timer hadn't started yet, which was a good thing, but...

Kyle quickly yelled out, "Butters! Stand back, you dumbass!"

"B-But the New Kid needs-!"

Kenny bit his lips together. So Butters knew the New Kid's name all along... That probably meant that those two were very close with each other. Either that, or Butters was the only one who remembered the name of the New Kid. Which probably made the rest of them pretty darn pathetic.

 **"Heh heh heh heh heh..."**

Everyone froze on the spot. Was that actually the New Kid being vocal for the first time...?

"New Kid...?" Clyde breathed in worry.

 **"Heh heh heh heh heh heh heh... ha ha ha ha ha... Ahahahahahaha… AHAHAHAHAHAHA...!"**

Craig face-palmed. "Oh, great. He's gone off his rocker. Fuck."

However, everyone shrieked and leapt back in fear when suddenly, dark purple flames erupted from the bottom of the New Kid's feet, surrounding them in hellfire. The New Kid slowly tilted their head up and revealed painful tear streaks, glowering red eyes which stared right at them and a wide broken grin.

"HOLY SHIT! He's seriously broken!" Kenny could only remark upon seeing the creepy sight in front of him. Was this really the monster they had made the New Kid into?!

 **"It's my fault my parents were always arguing with each other... it's my fault that Doctor Timothy nearly died... it's my fault that my dad's dead... it's my fault that Cartman's mayor... IT'S ALL MY FAULT!"**

Horrified, Timmy quickly pressed a finger to his temple and tried to communicate with the broken kid. "New Kid, calm down! I never blamed you for that incident! Darn it, there's no way to control his feelings!"

"New Kid, it wasn't your fault! You had no control over all those things that happened!" Token yelled through his helmet, yet to no avail as the flames swallowed the child up.

"Beep... Beep... Beep..."

The flames quickly dissipated, only to reveal a creepy, twisted abomination of the New Kid. The Freedom Pals could only stare in horror as they watched the bomb begin to count down.

"No way... the bomb's counting down?!"

Wendy gasped. "Guys! We all need to defeat the New Kid and defuse the bomb, or else he'll die!"

Kyle turned to the girl as if she was mad. "But how the fuck are we supposed to do that?! No one has any experience in this shit!"

"There's only one way to do it!" Timmy replied, "We need to find out which is the core wire that will stop the bomb! I'll analyse the bomb from here; you guys go and defeat the New Kid! We must help him!"

Suddenly, Craig stepped forward. "Y'know, usually, I don't care for this shit. But if it's Butthole which we're talking about, I'm in."

Tweek quickly followed suit with a determined look on his face. "Me too!"

Wendy nodded. "That's right! We'll save the New Kid!"

"The New Kid saved me when he was my Sidekick! I still owe him one!"

"Freedom Pals, assemble!"

"Dovahkiin, we will save you, and make you believe in yourself!"

"That's right!" Kenny stepped forward. He knew he had to take charge as the main strategist of the group. "We have to take him down and defuse the bomb to save him. Freedom Pals, let's do this! Retribution..."

Everyone readied their weapons and stances.

"BUT WITH INCLUSION!"


End file.
